Plaza Premium Group will open five 24-hour lounges airside in Terminal 1 at Santiago's Arturo Merino Benítez Airport, marking the operator's first Chile entry.
According to the company's official Plaza Premium Group release, three lounges are expected by the end of 2026, and two more are set for the first quarter of 2027 in the domestic departures and arrivals area.
- Where: Santiago SCL Terminal 1 domestic, airside.
- How many: Five Plaza Premium Lounges, all planned for 24-hour operations.
- First wave: Three lounges expected by the end of 2026.
- Second wave: Two lounges expected in the first quarter of 2027.
- Capacity range: About 54 to 134 seats per lounge, by area.
Domestic Chile travelers and LATAM connection passengers who currently wait in ordinary Terminal 1 hold rooms should treat late 2026 as the first planning horizon, not as a same-week open date.
No walk-in rates, Priority Pass status, or airline contract lists were published in the release, so access rules remain open questions until each lounge posts terms closer to opening.
The Moodie Davitt Report independently summarized the same five-lounge package and the end-2026 plus Q1 2027 phasing for airport hospitality readers.
That specialist write-up also restates the more than 530-seat combined capacity picture travelers should use when comparing SCL domestic options to a single large airline lounge elsewhere.
What Plaza Premium published by lounge
The release names five airside sites inside Terminal 1 with floor area and seat counts. Area G is 215 square meters with 54 seats on Level 3.
Area B is 468 square meters with 117 seats on Level 2. Area D is 526 square meters with 132 seats on Level 3.
Area A2 is 409 square meters with 102 seats on Level 2. Area E is 536 square meters with 134 seats on Level 2.
All five are described as 24-hour operations. That detail matters for redeye domestic departures and early morning arrivals when most airport food courts are closed.
Combined seat capacity across the five rooms is about 539 seats if every site opens as listed. That is a material expansion of paid and partner lounge inventory in the domestic terminal, not a single flagship room.
Santiago de Chile Airport CEO Nicolas Claude is quoted saying the domestic terminal welcomed over 12 million passengers between Santiago and 17 Chilean cities in 2025, and that the new lounges align with the airport's hospitality focus.
David Thompson, Plaza Premium's Senior Vice President for Latin America, framed Chile as a long-term investment and said additional projects in the country are already under evaluation for later growth after 2027 lounge openings.
What is still unknown for ticket holders
The announcement does not publish a day-one access list. Travelers should not assume Priority Pass, LoungeKey, airline status, or cash walk-up entry until each room posts its own rules.
It also does not name which domestic gates sit closest to Areas G, B, D, A2, and E. Map placement will decide whether a 45-minute connection can use a lounge without a long walk back to security-adjacent hold rooms.
Food, shower, and shower-free rest product details are also absent. Treat amenity claims as unconfirmed until pre-opening pages or on-site menus appear.
Pricing is unpublished. Budget a paid lounge visit only after a rate card posts, and compare it to airline domestic lounge access you already hold on LATAM or other carriers serving SCL.
For independent context on how large OTA and airport hospitality operators expand product inventory, travelers can still use practical booking tools rather than wait for every lounge feature to ship.
Deep Arrival's cheapest day to buy flights guide remains the flight-purchase check while lounge access is still a future product, not a same-week perk.
How to plan a domestic SCL trip around the rollout
If you fly Santiago to regional Chile cities in late 2026, watch Terminal 1 wayfinding for Plaza Premium brand signs near the five named areas once the first three rooms open.
If your trip falls in early 2027, assume the second pair may still be under fit-out in January, then available later in the first quarter if the published path holds.
International transfer passengers who never leave the international terminal should not plan around these rooms. The release places all five sites in Terminal 1 domestic operations.
Travelers building multi-day Santiago stopovers can still plan city time with local attractions such as Fantasilandia, while treating airport lounges as a separate preflight product that opens on its own schedule.
A worked example helps. A passenger with a 6:15 a.m., domestic departure in December 2026 should not count on lounge access until the first three rooms are confirmed open and the passenger's card, status, or walk-up rate is listed.
That passenger should still build a normal early-morning buffer for security and boarding, then use a lounge only if the live access rules match the ticket already in hand.
Families with long domestic connections inside Chile should also separate lounge hopes from child-care needs. Seat counts do not equal quiet rooms or play areas unless those amenities are listed later.
Business travelers with same-day multi-city Chile itineraries get the clearest upside once 24-hour rooms open, because redeye waits currently dump people into open concourses with uneven food hours.
Until then, the decision is simple logistics. Arrive with the same buffer you would use today, carry a charged battery pack, and treat any Plaza Premium sign as a bonus only after you verify entry with your card or boarding pass.
International visitors who clear immigration and recheck for a domestic hop later the same day are the other group that should reread Terminal 1 maps when the first three rooms open late this year.
| If you are… | Do this now |
|---|---|
| Flying domestic Chile in late 2026 | Watch for the first three Terminal 1 lounges and confirm access rules before relying on them. |
| Flying domestic Chile in early 2027 | Expect the second pair in Q1 2027, then verify open status week of travel. |
| Connecting only in the international terminal | Do not plan on these five domestic Terminal 1 rooms for your connection. |
| Holding Priority Pass or airline lounge rights | Wait for published network lists; do not assume automatic entry today. |
- Exact open dates: Day-of-year opens for the end-2026 trio and Q1 2027 pair.
- Access rules: Walk-up rates, card networks, and airline contracts per lounge.
- Gate maps: Walking time from each area to domestic gates.
- More Chile sites: Thompson said further projects in Chile are under evaluation.
Plan domestic SCL waits as ordinary Terminal 1 waits until each lounge posts an open date and access list, then recheck the week you fly.
Keep a screenshot of any posted access rule on your phone so gate agents and lounge hosts see the same terms you used to plan.
How many Plaza Premium lounges is Santiago getting?
Five lounges in Terminal 1 domestic, all described as 24-hour airside rooms, according to Plaza Premium Group's release.
When do they open?
Three are expected by the end of 2026, and two are expected in the first quarter of 2027. Exact calendar days were not published.
Can Priority Pass members enter on day one?
That is not confirmed. Wait for each lounge's access list before assuming card or membership entry.
Are these lounges useful for international connections?
Only if your path uses Terminal 1 domestic. The release places all five rooms in the domestic departures and arrivals area.
What seat counts should travelers expect?
Published capacities range from 54 seats in Area G to 134 seats in Area E, with three other rooms between 102 and 132 seats.
